THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS — Fri day, June 19, 1959 -- 32

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Abba Eban's Literary Works and Recordings

Israeli Leader's New Book, 2 Noteworthy
Records: Valuable 'Spoken Arts' Creations

man has mastered English and velt, this new record is vir-
Hebrew among the languages tually a history of Israel
and Israel's development—
he knows well.
Two records have just been in the economic and diploma.
made available, passing on to tic spheres. Interspersed with
us the voice of Abba Eban. We the noteworthy selections
have already reviewed his read- from Eban's speeches are the
ings of selections from the explanatory notes by Mrs.
Psalms and Ecclesiastes, on a Roosevelt who injects in her
comments historical data
Spoken Arts record.
Now we have another out- about Israel's struggles, dif-
standing recording as "Israel ficulties and eventual suc-
Speaks" long-playing disc of cesses.
This, therefore, is a record of
two sides, with selections from
more than the voice of Eban.
the speeches of Abba Eban.
Narrated by Eleanor Roose- It is also the voice of Mrs. Fran-
klin D. Roosevelt. It is the story
•••••43•1■0■•••■11-01111111.41■04■0•■•0.•10.0 41=1.0■041.111.11i 11.0■04.1M0■0.....1■041M113.1•1.0.M.1.11■ ,
of a people's emergence from
homelessness to prideful inde-
Boris Smolar's
pendence.
Mrs. Roosevelt has a superb
share in the making of this
recording—in the manner of
her presentation, in the dignity
of her interpretations of Israel's
(Copyright, 1959
aims and needs and aspirations.
Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Inc.)
Major credit for the superb
nature of this "Israel Speaks"
Communal Affairs
An interesting survey on the number of contributors to record goes to Millard Lampell,
Jewish welfare funds in various communities has just been author of many notable works,
completed by the Council of Jewish Federations and Welfare including the Lincoln cantata
funds . .. While there are communities where the number of "The Lonesome Train," who
contributors is considerably smaller than the number of local prepared the narration. The
Jewish families, there are also communities where the contrary editing was directed by Jack
is the case . . . In Detroit, for instance, there are 23,438 Jewish Lewis. Samuel Elfert produced
families but the number of contributors to the local Jewish it in association with Lampell
welfare fund campaign is 24,387 .. . In Cleveland, the number and Lewis.
of Jewish families is 27,000 but the Jewish welfare fund has
United Artists Records, '729
29,612 contributors . . . The situation is similar in Buffalo, 7th Ave., N. Y. 19, produced
Toledo, Columbus, Youngstown, Wilkes-Barre, Des Moines, Sioux this record.
* * *
City, Madison, Savannah and others . . . On the other hand cities
like New York, Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles, Philadelphia show
Abba Eban did more than
quite a gloomy picture with regard to the number of contributors speak his voice into the two
as compared to the number of resident Jewish familes there .. . recordings before leaving the
Philadelphia has 103,281 resident Jewish families, but only 62,651 United States. He has also left
of them are listed as contributors . . . Cities like Boston, Newark, with us another new book, "The
Milwaukee, Memphis, Tucson can boast that they have almost Tide of Nationalism," which has
as many contributors as local Jewish families, but this is not just been published by Horizon
the case with cities like Cincinnati, Minneapolis, Oakland, Pater- Press (220 W. 42nd, N. Y. 36).
son, Jersey City, New Brunswick, Phoenix, Tampa.
It is a valuable addition to his
earlier book, "Voice of Israel,"
Soviet Moods
Six delegations that have visited the Soviet Union during since it adds to his collection
the last three years have been promised by the Soviet authorities of speeches this important eval-
to rehabilitate the Yiddish theater and newspapers in Russia .. . uation of nationalism.
But so far these promises have not been fulfilled . . . The
"The Tide of Nationalism"
"administrative measures" taken in 1948 to liquidate Jewish was a Herbert Samuel Lecture.
cultural institutions are still in effect . . . And one can now read In it he especially dwelt on the
in the Soviet press more and more arguments against the revival nationalisms of the Middle East.
of Yiddish culture "because Yiddish has ceased to be a living Of his own people he declared
tongue" in the U.S.S.R. ... Against these arguments stands in it:
the fact, prior to the liquidation of Jewish culture in the Soviet
"Israel's nationalism is more
Union, no less than 3,200,000 copies of Sholom Aleichem's books than a political movement. It
in Yiddish were sold each year .. . Not to speak of the works is a faith; a religion; a culture;
of other Yiddish writers . . . Actually, at a conference of Jewish a civilization; a journey togeth-
cultural workers in Moscow in 1924, it was reported that there er of people across generations
were in the U.S.S.R. 439 elementary Yiddish schools, 56 secon- of martyrdom; and the intimate
dary schools, 44 technical, and four pedagogical institutes; also convenant born of that jour-
four Yiddish faculties attached to universities .. . At a similar ney and from the wondrous
conference four years later the above figures were almost arrival at the destination."
doubled . . . And, four years after the second conference, it
Eban stated in his lecture
was reported in the Soviet publications that 64 per cent of all
Jewish children in the country went to Yiddish schools . . . that "nationalism . . . is no
There were at that time 42 Yiddish newspapers and periodicals, longer held to be incompatible
four Yiddish publishing houses, 10 Yiddish state theatres, and with a broad university"; that
several Soviet radio stations gave many hours to Yiddish broad- "internationalism and national-
casts . . . Thus, Yiddish culture was progressing among Jews ism are not conceived as anti-
in the Soviet Union until its liquidation by "administrative meas- thetical terms." He goes into
ures" in 1948 . .• . That the interest in Yiddish culture is still great detail in discussing Arab
strong among Soviet Jews can be seen from the fact that Ameri- nationalism and he points out
can Jewish tourists returning from Moscow all report that that while it is often said that
Yiddish can still be heard on the streets in the Soviet capital .. . the world must come to terms
It is characteristic of the mood of the Soviet rulers that, while with Arab nationalism "there
making a lot of noise abroad about the 100th anniversary of the is a prior condition—that Arab
Jewish writer Sholom Aleichem being celebrated in the Soviet nationalism must come to terms
Union, the name of Sholom Aleichem Street in Kiev has been with the (UN) Charter, and
with the rights of other na-
changed to Konstantinov Street.
tions." He shows how Arab
Educational Notes
If you are one of the parents who send their children to states have flagrantly violated
an • afternoon Hebrew school, you are probably interested in the UN Charter.
The Arabs, he pointed out.
finding out what kind of a person the average teacher in such
a school is . . . The national study conducted by the American suffer from "a lack of altruism"
Association of Jewish Education is answering this question on and "failure to understand the
the basis of data collected in 289 schools with more than 1,200 social and economic factor in
teachers throughout the country . . . The typical teacher in the the responsibility of national
Hebrew weekday school is likely to be a man, born abroad, leadership."
"The chief gift that Israel
aged 25 to 45, married and the parent of one to three children
• . . He came from a Yiddish-speaking home, and can speak can contribute to the Asian
and African States, who are
Yiddish as well as Hebrew . . . He received his Jewish education
now cementing their relations
on a collegiate level either in the United States or abroad . .
with her, is an understanding
While teaching, he is continuing both his Jewish education
of the social, economic and
and his general education ... The probability is that he still
cultural content of national-
has no Jewish teacher's license, unless he teaches full time .. .
Jewish teaching is his main occupation, but to gain his livelihood ism," he said.
He added his belief that "the
he may have to teach in more than one school, or to find other
supplementary income . . . His salary varies considerably—he is spectacle of Israel's manifest
likely to receive from $1,500 to $4,500 annually for teaching permanence and stability is be-
from 8 to 20 hours per week . . . His parents gave him some ginning to make an impact on
encouragement to be a Jewish teacher, and he may encourage thoughtful Arab minds. Peace
will be gained not by a direct
his own children to follow in his vocational footsteps.

Abba Eban is no longer his
country's Ambassador to the
United States. He is in Israel,
preparing for a stirring political
campaign in which he will play
an important role in behalf of
the ruling Mapai party.
Before leaving this country,
however, after a decade of dis-
tinguished service, Eban left us
the legacy of his voice—as we
remember him as the spokes-
man for Israel, and in record-
ings which will be cherished
by all who value the manner
in which this able young states-

'Between You
... and Me'

Dr. Slosson

Abba Eban

route which leaps straight to-
ward it, but through the in-
direct approach of Israel's con-
solidation."

* * *

Interest is growing in the
very stimulating and inspiring
recording of Eban's voice in
his readings of selections from
the Psalms and Ecclesiastes, on
the long-playing Spoken Arts
record.
Arthur Luce Klein, president
of Spoken Arts, stated this
week that his firm's aim is "at
a modest sale of 25,000 copies
of the Eban record."
Since the proceeds of this
record will go to the Hebrew
University in Jerusalem,
Klein said that such a sale
"will enable us to send the
Hebrew University our check
for $75,000 to help establish
a Chair in American Liter-
ature."
The records are available
from Spoken Arts, Inc., 95 Val-
ley Road, New Rochelle, N. Y.,
at $5.95.
Dr. Frederick R. Lachman.
executive vice president of
American Friends of the He-
brew University, reporting on
the arrangements for the dis-
tribution of the Spoken Arts'
magnificent readings by Eban
in both English and Hebrew,
said that the retiring Ambas-
sador Eban was "particularly
enthusiastic about this record-
ing when he learned that
Spoken Arts will contribute $3
from each sale to the Hebrew
University' fund for a Chair in
American Literature."
The president of Spoken
Arts, Dr. Arthur Luce Klein,
was indeed destined to launch
this venture, for he has had
a long and varied career in
these fields as actor, director,
writer and teacher. After grad-
uate work at the Sorbonne in
Paris, he taught at the Univer-
sity of Michigan and the Uni-
versity of California, after
which he was the first Ameri-
can to be appointed to the di-
recting staff of the Royal Acad-
emy of Dramatic Art in London.
While in London he produced
plays on the West End and
later lectured extensively all
over England as well as making
appearances on the B.B.C. He
then formed an American thea-
trical company and toured plays
all over Europe, in one instance
going through the Scandinavian
countries as far as Helsinki.
The U.S. State Department gave
Dr. Klein a special grant and
sent him through France, Bel-
gium and Holland where he
lectured and gave dramatic
readings.
While at the University of
Michigan, Dr. Klein directed
the Hillel Players in a pro-
duction of Lawson's "Success
Story," which also was
brought to Detroit.
Dr. Klein continues to- add
glory to his record of creativity

Arthur Miller Mrs. Roosevelt

with his many "Spoken Arts"
records. The Abba Eban read-
ings are superb samples of the
magnificence of this series,
which has grown to a listing of
more than 50. The most noted
artists have been enlisted to
record their voices, and all the
arts are represented.
In fact, "Spoken Arts" offers
a liberal education to all who
are prepared to learn. History,
literature, poetry, drama, the
theater and a score of other
subjects — including the prob-
lems of the universe and of the
atomic power—are available in
these recordings.
Take the matter of history
and education. Three professors
—Preston Slosson of the Uni-
versity of Michigan, Jacques
Barzun of Columbia University,
and Robert M. Hutchins of the
University of Chicago — have
enriched the available material
discussing the major needs in
our communities.
His discussions of "The Uses
of History" and "Our Heritage
of History" make Prof. Slos-
son's record a great contribu-
tion to historical analyses. His
two lectures on this record
may well be considered tanta-
mount to a course in history.
Similarly, Dr. Barzun's talks
on "The Care and Feeding of
the Mind" and Prof. Hutchins'
evaluation of "The Promise of
Education" are most valuable
cultural products.
Arthur Miller's discussions
of and readings from "The
Crucible" and "The Death •
of a Salesman" combine to
offer instruction and enter-
tainment.
The informal hour with
Dorothy Parker will enchant
the listeners with her readings
from her poems.
There is genuine fun, as well
as instruction, in the hour with
S. J. Perelman.
A genuine contribution to
an understanding of the uni-
verse and of science is made
in the recording of the state-
ments by Dr. Edward Teller,
the eminent atomic scientist,
in his discussion of "The
Theory of Relativity" and
"The Size and Nature of the
Universe."
And then there are the two
recordings by an eminent com-
poser and a noted playwright
—Marc Blitzstein and Moss
Hart. Blitzstein discusses "The
Cradle Will Rock," "Regina"
and "No For an Answer," and
the songs are sung by noted
stars. Hart gives an initial
glimpse of Broadway, gives
selections from "A u t o b i o g-
raphy" and reads from "The
Man Who Came to Dinner" and
"Lady in the Dark."
These are but a few of Dr.
Klein's productions in a great
"Spoken Arts" series. He is
making a great gift to Ameri-
can culture with his noteworthy
recordings. —P. S.

JDC Aided 135,000 Disabled Newcomers

NEW YORK (JTA) — The
Joint Distribution Committee
reported that it has helped
more than 135,000 aged and dis-
abled immigrants and their de-
pendents in Israel during the
ten years since its establish-
ment of the Malben there.
The report, issued by Moses
A. Leavitt, JDC executive vice
chairman — in connection with
the '10th anniversary of Malben

—stressed that many of these
newcomers, listed as "hard core
cases," have been integrated
into Israel's economy. Malben is
the JDC's welfare program for
aged and handicapped immi-
grants in Israel.
The report said that between
17,000 and 20,000 newcomers
are receiving Malben-JDC aid
annually.